Does anyone make a living from yacht delivery?

[Lakesailor]

How long is a piece of string?
Will you have premises? What will your costs be? Will you be a sub-contract freelance?
I know a few instructor/broker/rigger/etc people in the area and also some outdoor-ed freelancers (climbing,caving/canoe/sailing/abseiling/mountain leading/stalking/etc).

One (woman) freelance works all over the place Alps, Pyrenees etc. but mostly they are scratting a living but enjoying the work.

I don't think £25K is a basic wage in this arena, I think you'd be fortunate to clear that.

 

[Seajet]

When BAe was going downhill faster than the Cresta Run, I opted for redundancy.

I noticed my chums who were being made redundant were getting access to a ‘re-training budget’, Flight Test Engineers with degrees and heaps of experience were getting trained as driving instructors.

I thought it would be rude not to avail myself of some of this funding, so as I already had the night school parts and had done a fair bit of casual instructing, I asked for a Yachtmaster Offshore course & exam.

The girl in ‘Human Resources’ ( why not call it ‘meat based assets’ ?! ) looked a bit doubtful, as if I was after a sailing holiday – this was December…

I said if it wasn’t approved I’d officially apply for training as a professional Morris Dancer, I don’t know who it says most about but she believed me !

I was very lucky to choose the now sadly defunct Solent School Of Yachting; I very quickly realised that better sailors than me were being paid peanuts to sail in any weather, and cook for the punters to boot, so binned that idea…

I was approached by a delivery skipper just after, he didn’t want to pay me anything at all, but stank of diesel, explaining the ketch he wanted to get from Spain to Holland had suffered a lightning strike, so no instruments or lights, engine starting was dubious, and only the mainsail was useable !

I politely declined; I do think if one is to keep sailing a passion, one should not try it as a job…

 

[Lakesailor]

That's the nub of it.

The best way to ruin a hobby is to do it as a job. (and I include photography in that)

 

[Halcyon Yachts]

That's the nub of it.

The best way to ruin a hobby is to do it as a job. (and I include photography in that)

Or... The best way to enjoy your job is to make sure it's your hobby!

Pete

 

[Reverend Ludd]

TBH
I agree, keep the hobby apart from your business.
It may work out ok but if it doesn't.......

 

[Sybarite]

You can make a small fortune out of yacht delivery... if you start with a large one.

 

[Halcyon Yachts]

hadn't notice you'd pulled this from the archive's till i got to your post.

I toy with the idea of working in sailing full time in a few years. Can I make a basic wage say 25000 a year from a cobination of deliveries, sail training and shore based teaching, is it likely I'd get enough work? How competative is the market place? How hard is it to break into?

I'd say that's achievable, but may not be easy... As with all things you need to be good at what you do, work hard to achieve your aims and know the right people... It can be competitive, many people like the sound of sailing for a living - but actually many give it up when they realise the amount of time away, the long hours in varied (and sometimes very difficult conditions), the odd nightmare yacht (as mentioned by a previous post), the problems with planning your social life and the impact on your relationships etc.. etc.. It isn't for everyone - and a great delivery Skipper is quite a unique person!

If you wish to call me I would gladly give you some advice on how to proceed within the industry...

Good luck!

Pete

 

[Rum_Pirate]

Sean

Happy birthday.

http://www.reliance-yachts.com may be a good place to start asking questions. If I recall correctly, they have the contract to deliver all the new Moorings boats from Cape Town to where ever in the world.

Given the 'press' that 'reliance' style companies have received here on should do due diligence research on that company and others before committing.

Payment may be difficult in some instances.

 

[Elemental]

I toy with the idea of working in sailing full time in a few years. Can I make a basic wage say 25000 a year from a cobination of deliveries, sail training and shore based teaching, is it likely I'd get enough work?

The maths is petty simple. There are, on average, approx 200 working days per year for your typical 9-5 office worker. If you want £25K pa then you have to be fully employed at a rate of £125 per day for each of those days, for every year. From what I've seen £125 per day is pretty good, and I can't see anyone getting 100% employment, so that means you have to earn a higher rate, or find a way of working more than 5 days per week, every week.

I reckon it's very unlikely.

I'd like to take up delivery skippering. However, I plan to do it when I am able to take what I call 'semi-retirement'. When I've earned enough to secure the capital intensive aspects of my life and I'm just looking for opportunities to fill the Tesco trolley and don't need a career that will keep the roof over my head

 

[Woodlouse]

I've sampled the delivery world and wouldn't touch that career path with a barge pole. It' ok once in a while for a quick cash injection, but to earn a living out of it you need to spend your entire life doing it.

If you want to earn a living working on small boats I'd suggest becoming an instructor. The pay isn't much different to deliverys and at least you don't get sent to the arse end of the world in the middle of winter in a boat of dubious seaworthyness.

 

[douglas family]

I'd say that's achievable, but may not be easy... As with all things you need to be good at what you do, work hard to achieve your aims and know the right people... It can be competitive, many people like the sound of sailing for a living - but actually many give it up when they realise the amount of time away, the long hours in varied (and sometimes very difficult conditions), the odd nightmare yacht (as mentioned by a previous post), the problems with planning your social life and the impact on your relationships etc.. etc.. It isn't for everyone - and a great delivery Skipper is quite a unique person!

If you wish to call me I would gladly give you some advice on how to proceed within the industry...

Good luck!

Pete

Thanks, some useful advice, the time away from home is a big issue for me with young kids! I may try my hand in another year or two but probably not just yet as finishing some career development training I'm doing at the momment will give me a much stronger fall back!

My idea for family sailing work balance is to do deliveries early and late in the season amounting to 3-4 months work, teaching day skipper etc during the summer so i'll be home about half the time and maybe some shore based courses in the winter. I just dont know if I could get enough work, and earn enough to make it viable.

 

[Deleted member 36384]

Thanks, some useful advice, the time away from home is a big issue for me with young kids! I may try my hand in another year or two but probably not just yet as finishing some career development training I'm doing at the momment will give me a much stronger fall back!

My idea for family sailing work balance is to do deliveries early and late in the season amounting to 3-4 months work, teaching day skipper etc during the summer so i'll be home about half the time and maybe some shore based courses in the winter. I just dont know if I could get enough work, and earn enough to make it viable.

I worked as a sailing instructor in the 1980's. I earned about £9000 a year and worked away from home from March to November. It was hard work but as a young buck, no problem. I now work month on / off with a family and that is hard enough. One point to consider: when you are away it all falls on your wife and that will be a significant strain which you will underestimate. It nearly broke my marriage even though I earn very good money and take the burden on my month home.

Some more antidotal evidence. I worked in Outdoor Education Centres as a Dinghy Instructor and without fail every mature (mid 30's onwards), Outdoor Instructor was trying to find jobs that were 9 to 5 within the Community Education sphere.

Recently there was a request for some sailing instructor relief work. The fee was £500. During the mid 1990's the fee for relief instructor was about £300 per week.